Well, I don't know for Unity since I never tried it, but if I compare SGDK2 with jMonkeyEngine (the 3D game sdk I use), SGDK2 was much easier to learn. With the example project, it helped a lot. There is a lot to learn in SGDK2 but it seemed pretty natural.

Ideally I would like to make a more exciting game than iotaBuildIt that people on all platforms can participate in building and playing simultaneously online and collaboratively. And I guess 3D is one thing to give a game more glamour, so I've decided to explore it a bit now that it's so painfully "easy" . Maybe I can make something that has a 2D map editor, but a 3D world... like umm... some hybrid between Little Big Planet and Minecraft, but with more specific constraints and goals if possible. Very fuzzy idea at the moment. I definitely want more story and character interaction than you find in LBP and Minecraft. Or maybe I'll just make a 3D RPG/adventure type game and worry about editors later. It's time for me to catch up on what everybody else is doing a little bit. But really I find the range of options for Android games on Google Play severely lacking somehow. I really got the idea because I'd like to make something exciting that I could participate in from an Android device. Unfortunately Unity isn't free for Android projects, but:1) Maybe if I get a good project I could upgrade or have someone transform/build it to Android for me, or2) Maybe if I can build it as a web project, Android devices could play it over the web.Also, durnurd pointed out to me recently that Unity existed (when I was talking about other project options).

cello95

I wonder if the first time SGDK2 user is as overwhelmed as I am as a first time Unity user. Wow, there's just a whole lot to learn here; where to begin?

I am new to programming (but not to 3D) and I tried Unity. It blew me away as far as complication is concerned. Holy crap! It took me 2 days just to make a terrain! :vomit:So I found GameDev V2 and thought it's pretty cool. I completed the "triangle game" tutorial and thought it was still cool. Then I got registered on the forums and I seem to be at the bottom of the pack. So, yeah.Where to begin? Definitely the tutorials.

I think Unity is a great free 3D game engine compared to almost everything else. Of course, it takes a bit of time to learn how to use it. The only reason I know how to use it was through my college and then some experimentation of my own through tutorials and messing with some of the settings. The huge downside I see for Unity is that although it can do 2D games, it feels to me a huge waste to use a 3D engine for a 2D game. For 2D games, I definitely recommend an engine specifically dedicated to making 2D games like SGDK or XNA. That's only my personal opinion as you can still make good 2D games on it (like this sonic remake) I just lack the patience to make it do so.

As for where to start, I recommend this tutorial. It shows most of the basic functions and most of the assets are already built.